Airplane safety cage



Sept. 30 1924. 1,509,962

- W. A. LORENZ AIRPLANE SAFETY CAGE Filed April 4. 1921 fnvenor:

a citizen of United States, residing at- Patented Sept. 30, 1924.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM A. LORENZ, F HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT.

AIRPLANE SAFETY CAGE.

Application filed April 4,

To all whom it may concem." I Be it known that T, WILLIAM A. LORENZ,

Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented new and useful improvements in Airplane Safety Cages, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a safetydevice for airplanes and comprises a framework, or cage, surrounding, or partlysurrounding the main body of the plane and the propeller." This framework is formed so as to serve as a rail structure, that permits the plane, if it meets an obstruction when landing, to turn completely over without damaging the machine or the propeller. It

also comprises a front collapsing device, which serves to protect the propeller and the plane if it collides head on, with an obstruction; or if the plane takes a nose dive;

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view, Fig. 2 a side view of the device. Fig. 3 shows the plane turned upside down. Fig. 4 illustrates the collapsing device after a nose dive.

The body is shown at 10, the propeller at 11, the wings at 12, the tail at 13 and wheels at 14.. The frameworkis secured to the axle of the machine. Two or more rails, 16 and 17 are preferably made in the form of an oval, surrounding the entire body of the plane and the propeller. The guard rails may also be secured to the body of the machine at as many points as desired. The rails 16 and 17 are connected by several cross braces as 18, 19, 20 and 21 The front portions of the rails are made in a rounded or curved form, and made continuous with the rails 16 and 17, if desired. I have, howe.ver, shown this. front portion collapsible; the sections shown are 22, 23, 24 with stop lugs 25, 25, 25. These lugs hold the c l- 'lapsing parts as shown in Fig. 2, when they I are sprung outwardly by the springs 27, 28, the other ends of the springs being attached to the framework or to the rails.

The collapsing section is shown collapsed in Fig. 4, as in a nose dive, the lugs 25 abutting together at 29 and 30, so as to prevent further collapse. machine is restored to its normal position, the springs 27 and 28 will press the collapsed sections outwardly as' shown in Fig. 2. I

llf .the front section of the machine is to the size of the machine.

When the 1921'; Serial No. 158,248.

lapsing front will, however, in many instances aid in saving the machine from being twisted or overstrained in a collision. When the a rplane effects a landing, it

runs on its wheels and slides on the rear of the rails. If an obstruction 31 is met, it may cause the entire plane to turn over as in Fig; 3, in case the impetus is great.

The weight of such a safety rail device may be as much as lOOlbs. per ton, which a plane may lift. This Weight will vary accordin That adde weight, however, will afford considerable protection to the aviator and to his machine.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with an airplaneof a protecting frame comprising a pair of rails extending longitudinally of the plane above the wings from in front of the prope'ller to back of th rudders, a pair of rails.

extending longitudinally of the plane below the fuselage from in front of the propeller to back of the rudders, said pairs of rails being a greater distance apart than the diameter of the propeller and the spread of the rudders, braces connecting said pairs of rails in front of thepropeller and braces connecting said pairs of rails in back of the rudders, whereby the propeller, fuselage and rudders are entirely within and protected by said frame. l

2. The combination with an airplane of a protecting frame therefor comprising two rails one to, each side of the body'of the plane, each of said rails being oval in side elevation and extending longitudinally above and below the plane and extending forwardly of the propeller, and rearwardly of the rudders,'and braces for connecting said rails together and securing the same tosaid airplane, said rails and braces forming a relatively wide, continuous cage-like band entirely encompassing in a longitudinal direction the body, the propeller and the rudders of. the airplane. whereby said the plane above the wings from in front'of yield on their joints when impact a ainst the propeller to back of the rudders, a pair them is sufiicient to overcome the tension of of jointed rails extending longitudinally of said springs,

the plane below the fuselage from in front Signed at Hartford, Conn., this 1st day 5 of the propeller to back of the rudders, of April,1921.'

braces connecting said pairs of rails in front of the propeller, braces connecting said WILLIAM LORENZ pairs of rails in back of the rudders, and Witnesses: springs retaining said jointed rails in D. MAUDE SMITH,

10 normal position, whereby the rails may CHARLES H. STORRS. 

